


Proud to Call You Mine

by Jenanigans1207



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Lance, Confessions, First Kiss, Fluff, Gay Keith, M/M, Pride Parade, and we love them that way, background romellura, background shadam, confirmed shadam, just so embarrassing, just very soft, pride month, shiro and adam are embarrassing, soft, starting a relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-25
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:08:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24918103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jenanigans1207/pseuds/Jenanigans1207
Summary: “Homosexuality is a sin!” The man yelled.Keith wasn’t really in the mood to argue about the bible— or the various translations of it that made it hard to know what the hell it was actually saying a lot of time— and he definitely didn’t feel up to defending his basic right to live. He was prepared to just blow the guy off and storm off to the other side of the parade, probably grabbing a drink along the way, when Lance stepped up next to him, squaring up with the man.“Oh it is, huh?” Lance said. “Well then, please enjoy watching me sin.”Keith turned, a question forming on his tongue. He didn’t get to ask his question, though, didn’t get to say anything because suddenly Lance’s hands were fisted in the front of his shirt, dragging him forward as Lance crashed their lips together. He held firmly to Keith’s shirt, not allowing him to move even an inch away— not that any part of Keith wanted to.-- or:Keith attends a pride parade with his brother and brother's fiancé, not expecting the guy he's secretly been crushing on to kiss him in front of a crowd of protestors to make a point.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Comments: 26
Kudos: 375





	Proud to Call You Mine

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Pride Month!! I am actually super excited to share this fic with you guys! I really hope you guys enjoy it! <3

It was a hot day, made hotter by the masses of people crowding the streets, crowding each other, moving and dancing and creating an impossibly warm atmosphere. Still, despite the heat, spirits were high. People were yelling, screaming, singing and just having a good time all around. It was contagious andKeith could feel a begrudging smile tug at the corner of his lips as he stumbled forward, Adam’s hand firm on the small of his back.

“I  _ am _ capable of walking on my own, you know.” Keith barked over his shoulder, but it wasn’t malicious. 

Adam, totally unbothered by Keith’s attitude let out a laugh. “Not fast enough, apparently! I swear, it must be something in your blood because Shiro walks impossibly slow, too.”

“I resent that!” Shiro cried from next to Keith, also stumbling a little as Adam’s other hand pushed him forward through the crowd and towards an opening right up along the barriers that blockaded the street for the parade.

The last few people parted in front of them and Adam finally let up on the shoving, allowing Shiro and Keith to close the final distance themselves. Keith stepped up to the barrier, getting a momentary breeze that swept across his sweaty forehead. Even in the midst of something like this, Keith couldn’t bring himself to dress in a more weather appropriate way, choosing to don his black jeans and a simple T-shirt. Shiro and Adam, on the other hand, had gone all out, wearing rainbow on nearly every inch of their bodies.

The first time they had dragged Keith to a pride parade, he had gone, but hadn’t had any idea what to expect. Still, he’d wanted to support his brother and his then-boyfriend (now fiance, soon to be husband in a few months!), and so he’d agreed to go. He’d ended up having a lot more fun than he expected, even if he had gotten a wicked sunburn across his face.

In the years following, he had gone every year, remembering the sunblock but not dressing any differently. This year was the first year where he was attending for himself as much as he was attending for Shiro and Adam. It was only a few months ago that Keith had come out, somehow barely able to get the words out when he was telling Shiro and Adam as if they would ever judge him.

It wasn’t even the fact that they were gay themselves, it was the fact that they were the two kindest people Keith had never met. They could both have been straight as arrows and he knows they still wouldn’t have given him anything but their full support. Still. It was his first time saying it out loud and it was scary. But the moment the words had left the tip of his tongue, he’d felt a bit of relief that had turned into a huge wave of relief when Shiro and Adam had enveloped him in the biggest bear hug of all time. Shiro might have cried— he won’t admit it but Keith could swear he’d heard him sniffling. 

Because it was his first year attending in support of himself, Adam had tried his best to get Keith to wear something with a rainbow on it,  _ anything _ , but Keith hadn’t wanted to. It wasn’t because he was ashamed, but because he was comfortable with who he was— and who he was involved a lot of black and red and very little of any other colors. They’d finally compromised on a black flat-billed cap that had the rainbow painted across the bill. Keith wore it, relishing in the way it kept the sun out of his eyes.

He glanced to his left to see Adam leaning into Shiro, just an inch or two shorter than him, speaking loudly to be heard over the music and the crowds. In front of them, floats went by, all decorated to the nines. They were filled to the brim with dancers, a few of them even throwing handfuls of different things out towards the crowd. Keith glanced down to see the ground at his feet already littered with condoms and stickers.

Turning back to Shiro and Adam, Keith was about to comment on this when the words died on his tongue. There, on the other side of his family was a boy he only knew vaguely, but couldn’t stop thinking about. He’d seen Lance a bunch on campus— in the library, at the coffee shop, even passing in the dorm hallways— but they’d never spoken. Still, it didn’t change the fact that he was  _ gorgeous _ .

And he was standing behind Shiro in a pair of short jean shorts and a crop top colored like the bisexual flag. His entire toned midriff was on display, the muscles of his abs obvious as he danced to the music, arms thrown over his head and eyes closed. He looked like he was living a moment of pure bliss, like he couldn't imagine anything that could be better than this. Keith felt his mouth go dry as he continued to stare, completely entranced and unable to look away.

“Hey!” It was Shiro’s voice right by his ear that finally got his attention and Keith snapped his eyes to his brother, feeling the heat rush to his cheeks immediately. “What the hell has you that focused?”

Keith immediately ducks his head, using the rainbow bill of his hat to hide his expression from Shiro. It doesn’t do a lot of good, though, because Shiro definitely already saw. “Nothing. I was just looking at the crowd.”

Shiro crouches the few inches to be able to see under Keith’s hat and lock eyes with him. “Tell me.”

Keith can feel his bones rattle as he exhales. “It just— I saw Lance.”

Immediately, Shiro’s face  _ lights _ up. The grin is so big that it nearly splits his face in half. He grabs Adam by the upper arm and nearly wrenches it off as he drags Adam over, forcing him to crouch to join their secret little meeting. Keith glares daggers at his brother, but there’s no deterring him.

“Woah,” Adam says, trying to pry his arm out of Shiro’s vice grip. “What’s happening?”

“ _ Lance _ is here.” Shiro says.

This time, it’s Adam’s turn to have his face light up. He completely forgets about freeing his arm from Shiro, leaning in closer. “He is? Oh my god, which one is he?”

With a groan, Keith scrubs his hands across his face even though he knows it won’t actually do anything to help with his embarrassment. When Keith had come out to them, Shiro had asked him one singular question: who made him realize he was gay? Shiro said everyone has a “gay awakening” — Keith had rolled his eyes at the phrase— and Shiro just wanted to know who his had been. Sometimes it was celebrities, sometimes it was some cute guy on the train that would never be seen again. It could be anyone and Shiro had promised it’d be the only question he asked.

He’d held true to his word, too. He hadn’t even asked for any details of Lance when Keith had finally squeaked out his name, refusing to look either of them in the eye. Still, Keith had provided them with  _ some _ information— mostly that Lance was a guy he saw frequently at school and that he was stupidly gorgeous and always laughing. As the months had passed, Shiro had pressed here or there for more information, trying his best to get Keith to admit that he had a crush.

He wouldn’t admit that, though. He  _ didn’t _ have a crush. He hadn’t ever even  _ talked _ to Lance. How could he have a crush on someone he’d never had a conversation with? He just thought Lance was pretty, and charming, and warm and bright and welcoming. He thought about Lance during his lectures, wondering what Lance could possibly be majoring in. He thought about Lance sometimes as he was falling asleep, having just run into him in the hallway, wrapped only in a towel with wet hair dripping onto his bare shoulders. 

But that wasn’t a crush! At least, he didn’t  _ want _ it to be a crush. As far as Keith could tell, Lance was dating a beautiful girl. He always saw the two of them laughing together, brushing shoulders casually, leaning into each other’s space. It was like they were inseparable. And the only thing worse than crushing on someone you never spoke to was crushing on someone you never spoke to who was also already taken. 

Still, he owed it to Shiro and Adam to at least point Lance out. They had been there with him every step of the way and they were his family. So, he took a deep breath and dropped his hands, finally gesturing to Lance— who was still dancing in his very,  _ very _ short shorts. 

“Holy shit.” Shiro said immediately. “I’m looking at the right guy, right? The one in the crop top?”

“Yes,” Keith tried his best to keep his eyes off of Lance. The last thing they needed was all three of them staring blatantly. That was bound to draw Lance’s attention. “You’re looking at the right guy.”

“Well, shit.” Adam breathed. “I can definitely see why he was  _ the one _ .”

“Can you guys stop being so obvious?” Keith asked, smacking Shiro in the chest. “Seriously.”

Shiro, at least, relented, turning his attention back to Keith. Adam kept staring. “You should go talk to him.”

Before Keith had a chance to whack Adam, too, the girl Keith always saw Lance with arrived, sliding up next to him. Her long white hair was tied in a high ponytail, cascading down her back and over her shoulders. She was absolutely stunning, there was no denying that. She reached up to brush a few pieces of Lance’s hair off of his forehead and Lance greeted her with an enthusiastic hug. 

“Yeah,” Keith replied bitterly, turning his back on the scene in front of him. “I’m going to pass on that one.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Shiro clapped Keith on the shoulder, giving it an encouraging squeeze. “That sucks.”

Keith tried to wave him off, but he couldn’t deny that there was a bit of an ache deep in his gut. But, he was at a parade and it was meant to be a fun day. He reached up to readjust his hat and offer Shiro and Adam the best smile he could muster, pretending he couldn’t see Lance and the girl. But he could, and both of them knew it.

“C’mon,” Adam said, “Let’s find another spot.”

“Fine,” Keith agreed, shooting a glare at Adam, “But only if you let me walk myself this time. No shoving!”

“If you walk fast enough, I won’t have to intervene!” Adam laughed and gave Keith a fond pat on the back.

When Shiro had first met Adam, it had essentially been instant love. Shiro had come home from their first date outright  _ gushing _ about Adam. He was smitten from the very beginning. So, Keith had taken it upon himself to be the level-headed one and to try and judge Adam fairly to make sure he would be good for Shiro. But it had only taken Keith five minutes of knowing Adam to love him, too. He was a  _ perfect _ fit for Shiro. He put up with all of Shiro’s annoying habits, pushing him when he needed to be pushed and found even the worst things about him endearing in some way. It was impossible to see the two of them together and  _ not _ believe in love.

So, Keith had accepted Adam into the family with open arms and never looked back. Which meant that he now had two brothers (even if they weren’t married  _ yet _ ) who liked to nag him and meddle in his life. But he loved them both dearly.

“Yeah, yeah.” Keith took off through the crowd, weaving his way through throngs of people. He glanced over his shoulder occasionally to make sure Shiro and Adam were still following him.

It only took a minute or two before he made his way out of the crowd, coming to a halt when he broke through one wall of people and almost crashed into another. It wasn’t uncommon to see protestors at a pride parade— Keith had seen them every year that he’d gone— but that still didn’t make them a welcome sight. Keith paused, the throng of protestors in front of him chanting and shoving signs in his face. He batted one of the signs away, frustrated with this entire day so far.

“You would dare defy God like this?” One of the protestors asked, jutting a finger into his chest.

“Yeah,” Keith smacked the guy’s hand away, feeling Shiro and Adam come to a stop behind him. “I would.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Keith noticed that Lance and his girlfriend had followed them out of the crowd and were now stopped just a few feet away, staring at the group of protestors. Keith didn’t have a chance to think much more about that before the guy in front of him took another step forward.

“Homosexuality is a sin!” The man yelled.

Keith wasn’t really in the mood to argue about the bible— or the various translations of it that made it hard to know what the hell it was actually saying a lot of time— and he definitely didn’t feel up to defending his basic right to live. He was prepared to just blow the guy off and storm off to the other side of the parade, probably grabbing a drink along the way, when Lance stepped up next to him, squaring up with the man.

“Oh it is, huh?” Lance said. “Well then, please enjoy watching me sin.”

Keith turned, a question forming on his tongue. He didn’t get to ask his question, though, didn’t get to say  _ anything _ because suddenly Lance’s hands were fisted in the front of his shirt, dragging him forward as Lance crashed their lips together. He held firmly to Keith’s shirt, not allowing him to move even an inch away— not that any part of Keith wanted to. 

The crowd of protestors in front of them made a series of indignant noises, yelling things that had become completely incoherent to Keith because every sense was wrapped up in Lance. They separated just for a moment, panting into the small space between them. Keith glanced to his left to see that the crowd had mostly dispersed, but not completely, and he took his opportunity to pull Lance back in, threading his fingers into the hair at the nape of Lance’s neck and tilting his head so they could slot together even more perfectly.

Lance huffed out a laugh against his lips, one hand slipping around Keith to splay across the small of Keith’s back and pull him until their torsos were completely flush with each other. Keith, taking that as a cue, moved his other hand to Lance’s back, a shiver running down his spine when he was met with nothing but Lance’s warm skin. He’d loved the crop top before, but he loved it even more in this moment.

Keith had heard about fireworks going off when you kiss someone you love, about  _ the spark  _ and how things were supposed to feel when you found the one. He’d heard all of that, he’d seen Shiro go through it, and yet none of it had prepared him for what it would feel like to kiss Lance. It was absolutely thrilling, an electricity running along every nerve in his body and lighting him up but at the same time, in some weird way, it felt like coming home. It had that warm comfort that wrapped around him, that made him feel like he was exactly where he needed to be. 

Finally, the last of the protestors dispersed, throwing some last comments over their shoulders as they went. Keith knew that he had to separate from Lance, but he didn’t want to. It was obvious that Lance had only done this to upset the protestors— and Keith admired the hell out of that— and not because he wanted to. Which meant that Keith wanted to milk this moment for everything he could, wanted to kiss Lance’s lips as many times as possible so he could relive this moment for months to come. If this was his only shot— and all signs point to it being his only shot— he wanted it to be worth absolutely  _ everything _ .

But, at the same time, he didn’t want to wind up in a bad situation, so he pressed one more kiss to Lance’s lips and then stepped back, untangling his fingers from Lance’s hair. 

And he was immensely surprised to find that Lance didn’t let him go, keeping one hand firm on his back so he couldn’t possibly go more than one step away.

“Lance?” He asked, acutely aware of Shiro, Adam and Lance’s girlfriend’s stares burning into them as they all tried their best to pretend that they weren’t paying attention.

“You know my name?” Lance asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise. Keith, not trusting his voice, simply nodded. “Holy shit.”

A beat of silence passed between them before Keith finally tried again. “Lance? You’re gonna have to start explaining. Or let me go.”

At that, Lance pulled Keith closer, just barely, but it still lit Keith’s nerves up for the second time. “I’m sorry for kissing you.” Lance began in a rush, even though he certainly didn’t seem sorry for anything. “It’s just, they were heckling and I— I—” Keith was just about to supply the rest of the sentence, to say that Lance wanted to piss them off, when Lance finally finished his sentence himself. “I have been looking for a reason to kiss you.”

_ That _ stopped Keith in his tracks. “You have?”

“Well, I mean, I’ve been looking for a reason to interact with you.” Lance rushed on. “I was planning on starting with, you know, a conversation. But then this happened and— yeah. I’m sorry. I'll just—”

Lance finally let go of Keith, taking a step back himself, eyes on the ground between them. He started to take another step away when Keith reached out for him, catching one of the loops on his nearly nonexistent shorts. “Woah, woah, woah. You don’t get to say that and then just run!”

“Are you sure? Running sounds really great right about now.” Lance replied, but he was smiling a little. 

“Don’t you have a girlfriend?” Keith blurted out, startling both him and Lance.

Lance looked over at him with wide eyes, and Keith notices for the first time that he has freckles dusting across his cheeks. His face is a little pink, like he’s getting a sunburn from being out here, too. The thought almost makes Keith smile in fondness. He follows the pink down, eyes landing on Lance’s shoulders to find a few smatterings of freckles on each shoulder. Keith hadn’t thought it was possible, but Lance is even more gorgeous up close. 

“A girlfriend?” Lance echoed, drawing Keith’s attention back up to his face. “No?”

“But—” Keith feels baffled. He gestures vaguely to the girl who is now engrossed in a conversation with someone else, although it’s clear that she’s still keeping tabs on their conversation as much as she can.

“Allura?” Lance echoes before breaking out in a smile. “Oh my god. She’s my best friend, but not my girlfriend. In fact,  _ her _ girlfriend is the girl she’s talking to right now.”

“Oh.” Keith said, and he feels dumb. He’s not really sure how else he could feel in a moment like this. He had so clearly misread what was going on between them.

That seems to relieve Lance, though, and he sags a little in front of Keith. “Is that why you’ve never spoken to me? You thought I was dating her?”

“Pretty much.” Keith concedes before adding. “Wait, how did you know I wanted to talk to you?”

“I’ve seen you staring,” Lance replies, suddenly all confidence and smiles. Keith flushes about a million and a half shades of red, attempting to form some sort of apology or excuse before Lance cuts him off. “Wiat, no, that’s not bad! The only reason I caught you staring was because I was also staring!”

“You were— what?” They stare at each other again and Keith is certain he can hear Shiro and Adam snickering beside him. Of course they wouldn’t step in and help him navigate what is easily the weirdest situation of his life. 

Lance scrubs a hand through his hair and lets out a sigh. “Okay, let’s just start over. Can we do that?”

“Sure?” Keith agrees, entirely unsure what that would entail.

“Great!” Lance takes a deep breath and then beams at Keith. “Hi, I’m Lance. I’ve seen you around campus a lot and I think you are  _ unfairly hot _ . I mean, seriously, could you let me breathe from time to time?” Keith couldn’t stop the disbelieving smile that came as a response to that and Lance blushed, a little abashed. “Anyways, I would really, really like to take you on a date. If kissing you out of the blue didn’t completely ruin everything, at least.”

“I—” Keith begins and he can see the way Lance is holding his breath in anticipation of his response. “would really, really like to go on a date with you, yes.”

“Holy shit!” Lance exhales all at once and throws himself at Keith, slinging his arms around Keith’s shoulders and crushing their bodies together.

Keith could hear Shiro and Adam outright cheering now, hooting and hollering and clapping in the most embarrassing way possible. At least, he thought that was the most embarrassing thing they could do but, a moment later, they had thrown themselves into the hug, wrapping Keith and Lance up between them. It only took another second for Allura and her girlfriend to join the hug and suddenly the six of them were all tangled together, laughing and cheering. 

A minute or two later, everyone finally untangled themselves, becoming six individual people again. Lance was grinning as he looked over at Shiro and Adam who each had a hand on one of Keith’s shoulders, absolutely beaming with pride. They were so  _ embarrassing _ , and yet Keith knew he wouldn’t want this any other way.

“Lance,” He said, knowing introductions were necessary. “This is my brother, Shiro, and his fiance, Adam. Guys, this is—”

“Lance, we know!” Shiro chimed in, stepping forward to shake Lance’s hand. “We’ve heard so much about you!”

“You have?” Lance asked, his grin turning sly. “Tell me all about that.”

“I will not hesitate to keep you two separated!” Keith threatened, stepping in and pushing them apart with a hand on each of their chests. 

Everyone laughed as Adam whispered, “We’ll tell you some other time.”

Keith was two seconds away from threatening death on Adam when Allura stepped up, her fingers intertwined with her girlfriend. “Oh, if we’re playing that game, I can confirm that Lance has spent  _ months _ gushing about you, Keith.”

“Okay, okay!” Lance cries, waving his hands in front of Allura to cut her off, “It’s not funny when it’s against me!”

Allura swats at Lance’s hands affectionately, smiling at Keith. “How about we all just get back to the parade, yeah? You guys should come with us! I believe face paint was next on our agenda.”

“We would love to!” Shiro says, taking off after Allura immediately.

“I am  _ not _ getting my face painted!” Keith calls at their retreating backs, taking up the rear with Lance at his side. 

He hears a quiet huff of a laugh and knows that Lance is smiling fondly next to him. A moment later, he feels Lance’s hand brush against his. In a moment of boldness, Keith takes Lance’s hand, threading their fingers together. Lance gives him a squeeze, taking a half step closer so their shoulders bump. Keith feels that warm feeling of being at home again and he thinks that this is probably how Shiro felt when he met Adam.

Keith wants to say something to Lance, something to break the ice or address the situation but all his brain can come up with is “Thanks for kissing me.”

Lance’s laugh is warm and full as it washes over him. “I’d be happy to do it again any time you’d like.”

“Bold statement from someone I’m not even officially dating,” Keith teases. He feels at ease. Comfortable with Lance by his side. Happy.

“Oh, we will be officially dating soon, don’t you worry.” Lance replies. He looks over at Keith, the pink flush to his cheeks beautiful against his tanned skin. Keith wonders for a moment if it’s a blush or just the beginnings of a sunburn before realizing that he honestly doesn’t care. “And when we are, I will be proud to call you mine.”

A fuzzy feeling fills Keith’s stomach at the words. He stops, dragging Lance to a stop next to him and silencing the next question on Lance’s lips with a kiss. 

“I’ll be proud to call you mine when I ask you to be my boyfriend first.” Keith says as they break apart.

“Oh, you’re so on.” Lance replies as they take off after their friends.

In the end, Keith knows that it doesn’t actually matter which one of them asks firsts. He’ll be proud to call Lance his no matter what.


End file.
